Chris Volstad earns 2nd win in a row as Cubs win 6-4 over Giants

The Cubs won 6-4 over the San Francisco Giants this afternoon at Wrigley Field.  Chris Volstad started for the Cubs and allowed two runs on five hits while walking three batters and striking out two over 5-2/3 innings pitched.  Volstad earned his second straight win after finally breaking free of his 24-game winless streak in his previous start on Sunday against the Colorado Rockies.

Volstad addressed the streak and said, "Winning two in a row, or losing 24 in a row, I'm still going to pitch in the rotation the next five days and I have to get ready for that, just like I would any other time."

Alfonso Soriano had an amazing game as he drove in three runs and also hit his 24th home run.  Anthony Rizzo also hit his 10th homer today, which was under video review before the umpires deemed it a home run.  Wellington Castillo also ended up with an inside-the-park homer in the third inning.

The Cubs finished August on a high note, despite an 8-21 record for the month.  The team is motivated to not lose 100 games this season, so they are prepared to play hard in September.  This is especially important, because it would make it even harder for everyone if they were not even trying, but that's definitely not the case.

Anthony Rizzo and Alfonso Soriano both hit homers in Friday's game against the Giants (photo from cubs.com)

Joe Mather scores on Friday against the Cubs' win against the Giants (photo from Chicago Tribune)

In other Cubs news, the team recalled left-hander Jeff Beliveau from Triple-A Iowa and optioned left-hander Brooks Raley to Iowa.

Tomorrow the Cubs and Giants will play the second game in the three-game series at 12:05pm CT.  Justin Germano will make the start for the Cubs and try to earn his third win of the season.  He will face right hander Tim Lincecum.